Chairman Masingill: “Strategic federal investments into the physical and human infrastructure of Delta communities are necessary to create economic opportunity for the hard-working people of southeast Missouri.”

MISSOURI BOOTHEEL– The Delta Regional Authority and its state and local partners are investing $11.3 million in federal and local resources aimed at Delta small business owners, entrepreneurs, families, and communities and designed to grow the region’s economy and create jobs, Delta Regional Authority Federal Co-Chairman Chris Masingill and local partners announced today.

The seven new investments, from building and repairing roadways and sewer systems to hospital upgrades, leverage approximately $1 million in federal resources into nearly $10 million in total public and private investment for the Delta region, its people, and its future. These investments are expected to help create and retain 139 jobs and train 50 Missouri residents for 21st century jobs.

State

# of

Projects

DRA

Resources

Leveraged

Funds

Total

Investment

Missouri

7

$1,088,953

$10,241,957

$11,330,910

The awards are provided through the DRA States’ Economic Development Assistance Program, the agency’s main federal funding program that invests in basic public infrastructure, transportation infrastructure, workforce development, and business development and entrepreneurship projects in the 252 counties and parishes of the eight-state Delta region. DRA coordinates directly with Missouri’s local development districts in the region for program funding implementation.

“In this time of extreme competition for jobs and business attraction, these strategic federal investments into the physical and human infrastructure of Delta communities are necessary to create economic opportunity for the hard-working people of southeast Missouri and the greater Delta region,” Chairman Masingill said.

“The investments made by the Delta Regional Authority into the people, businesses, and communities of Southeast Missouri are important to the economic success of this region and our state,” Governor Jay Nixon said. “Projects that build up local infrastructure, workforce skills, and health access are essential to a thriving local economy. This funding moves our communities in the right direction.”

“This is terrific news for southeastern Missouri,” U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill. “These resources will support a variety of important projects—from improving roads to drilling a new water well—that will boost local jobs and regional business opportunities in the process.”

SPECIFIC INVESTMENT PROJECTS

1. Infrastructure for local economic development—Steelville: Extension of road and utility service to a new lodge and the opening of acreage for development adjacent to the industrial park. DRA Investment: $130,300; Leveraged Public Investment: $30,820; Total Project Cost: $161,120; Private Investment: $2,700,000 (8 jobs to be created).

3. Ozark Foothills Development Association Incubator—Poplar Bluff: Expansion of the current business incubator operated by the Ozark Foothills Development Association to provide an additional 10,000 square feet of space for new and growing businesses. DRA Investment: $200,000; Leveraged Public Investment: $659,918; Total Project Cost: $859,918 (5 jobs to be created).

4. Naturally Meramec—Multi-county: Creation of a consortium of agri-tourism and business entities in Crawford, Dent, Phelps, and Washington counties that will work together to market and use each other's products. DRA Investment: $88,845; Total Project Cost: $88,845 (2 jobs to be created and 32 jobs to be retained).

5. Eminence Industrial Road Improvements—Eminence: Reconstruction and widening of an existing city street that serves as the primary access road to a major manufacturing company and the city's fire department building. DRA Investment: $214,488; Leveraged Public Investment: $23,832; Total Project Cost: $238,320; Private Investment: $115,000 (3 jobs to be created and 29 jobs to be retained).

6. Three Rivers College Kennett Campus Nursing Program—Poplar Bluff: Purchase of necessary simulation learning equipment for the nursing program of Three Rivers College. DRA Investment: $100,000; Leveraged Public Investment: $100,000; Total Project Cost: $300,000 (50 residents to be trained for 21st century jobs).

7. Houston Water Tower and Well—Houston: Drilling of a new water well and construction of a new water tower for industry expansion. DRA Investment: $150,000; Leveraged Public Investment: $900,000; Total Project Cost: $1,100,000 (60 jobs to be created).

The Delta Regional Authority is a federal-state partnership that is congressionally mandated to help create jobs, build communities, and improve lives through strategic investments in economic development in the 252 counties and parishes of the Delta region. The investments come through the DRA’s States Economic Development Assistance Program. Through the past twelve project cycles, the DRA has created and retained more than 17,000 jobs with 24,500 more projected. These investments have leveraged $2.7 billion in other public and private investment with DRA projects that are helping to train 26,000 for a 21st century workforce and have provided more than 25,000 families access to clean water and sewer services.